Isokinetic Peak of Torque and Fatigue Index in Simulated Wheelchair Propulsion in Elite Wheelchair Rugby Players

Abstract

Background: In sports such as wheelchair rugby, the correct assessment and quantification of an athletes’ peak of torque and fatigue index in sport-specific actions are essential in monitoring an athletes’ training performance. The increase in the number of people practicing Paralympic sports has been growing exponentially, contributing to an increase of competition level and of athletes’ performance. Objective: Thus, physical training for Paralympic sport must aim to maximize athletes’ fitness potential by investigating and evaluating what variables are most important in determining ideal sporting performance. Methods: Six high-level wheelchair rugby athletes had their wheelchair propulsion peak of torque and fatigue index evaluated by isokinetic dynamometry in three different angular velocity and repetition schemes. Results: The athletes presented no significant statistical difference in peak of torque and fatigue index for both arms at different number of repetitions and angular velocity. Conclusions: This shows that independent of dexterity parameters or duration of stimuli, these high-level athletes display this motor skill in constant levels of performance. These results will allow coaches to set up normative parameters to test and evaluate their players’ performances.

Sport Biomechanics Before and After the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games

“…We found 3D 46 and 2D kinematics, 36 in addition to photocells, 14,15,21,33,35 contact platforms 2,[13][14][15]26,43 , and linear transducers. 2,13,14,21,25,26,[28][29][30] We observed the use of dynamometry in publications involving measurements with force platforms, 13,38,47 load cells, 18,20,23,28,30 and isokinetic, 16,27,31,[38][39][40] manual, 17,24,40,47 and lumbar dynamometers, 40 It is interesting to note that we did not find any studies that evaluated pressure distribution in parathletes.…”

“…Regarding the origin of the publications (Figure 1C), with the exception of those produced by the São Paulo Nucleus of High Performance in Sport (NAR) 13,14,21,25,15,26 and the Sarah Network of Rehabilitation Hospitals, 21,27 the first author of all other publications was linked to one of the 13 (87%) Public Universities reported, totaling 28 published articles. UFS 18,20,23,[28][29][30] and UNICAMP 11,[31][32][33][34][35] are noteworthy for being public institutions with the highest number of articles published, with six articles from each institution. However, the largest number of publications per institution was produced by NAR, with seven articles published.…”

Place of the gold standard isokinetic dynamometer in Paralympic sports: a systematic review

“…Although BID is a gold standard for biomechanical data measurement [41], the small number of studies in Paralympic fields shows a lack of scientists' interest to use the method in their studies. Among the included studies, 50% were performed in Brazil in years 2015-2018 [32][33][34][35][36], which indicates a tendency of Brazilian researchers to investigate this topic to a higher degree than in the case of other countries, particularly in the recent years.…”

“…Five studies were accomplished in Brazil [32][33][34][35][36], 2 in the Netherlands [37,38], 1 in the United states [39], 1 in Poland [25], and 1 in New Zealand [40]. the total number of participants in the 10 studies was 219, with 149 being para-athletes; the size of the sample ranged from 4 to 42 subjects.…”

“…two studies applied the Biodex system 4 Pro [33,34], and 2 studies did not provide information about the Biodex system used [38,40]. BID measurements were performed for a variety of joints or body segments in the included studies: for the knee in 4 studies [32,35,37,38], for the elbow in 2 studies [36,39], for the shoulder in 2 studies [25,40], and for the trunk in 2 studies [33,34]. table 2 presents a more detailed characterization of the articles.…”